Various types of flame simulating assemblies, such as electric fireplaces, are known. Many of the prior art flame simulating assemblies include one or more components intended to resemble actual fuel in a real fire. Typically, the fuel which is simulated is wood (i.e., logs), or coal.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 566,564 (Dewey) discloses an electric heating apparatus with a cover (B′) which “is made . . . of a transparent or semitransparent material” (p. 1, lines 50-52). The cover is “fashioned or colored” so that it resembles coal or wood “in a state of combustion when light is radiated through it” (p. 1, lines 53-57).
However, the use of a partially translucent shell such as the cover disclosed in Dewey to imitate burning solid combustible fuel has some disadvantages. In particular, a portion of the shell typically is formed to simulate the fuel (e.g., logs), and another portion of the shell simulates an actual ember bed (i.e., embers and ashes) which results from combustion of the fuel. For instance, where the combustible fuel to be simulated is wood in the form of logs, the logs are simulated in the shell by raised parts which are integral to the shell, rather than pieces which are physically separate from the ember bed. Because it is evident from even a cursory observation of this type of prior art imitative fuel bed that the raised parts (i.e., simulated logs) are formed integrally with the simulated ember bed part of the shell, this type of imitative fuel bed tends to detract from the simulation effect sought.
In some flame simulating assemblies of the prior art, the simulated fuel components are intended to represent actual glowing coals, i.e., partially combusted (and combusting) coals in a fire. For example, some prior art imitative coal pieces are separate elements, shaped and sized to resemble actual pieces of coal, which are made of a transparent or translucent material (e.g., glass) through which light is transmitted, in an attempt to simulate the glowing effect sometimes provided by actual pieces of coal in a real fire. Examples of such simulated fuel components are found in GB 249,321 (White), U.S. Pat. No. 1,692,021 (Auer), and U.S. Pat. No. 4,965,707 (Butterfield). In each of these prior art fuel beds, however, the pieces of glass or other light-transmitting material intended to simulate coal are shaped and colored internally (i.e., they are made of a transparent or translucent material colored appropriately) in order to achieve such an effect. However, the known imitative coal pieces have some disadvantages.
In particular, each such piece generally has only one color, unlike actual pieces of coal in a real fire. In contrast, actual pieces of coal in a fire tend to have dark portions which are generally black or dark gray, and glowing portions which have brighter colors, such as red, orange, yellow, and combinations thereof. The dark portions may be largely matte, or partly matte with some small glossy parts irregularly distributed therethrough. Also, the part of the surface of each prior art imitative coal piece which is not glowing tends to be much more glossy than the surfaces of coal pieces in a real fire, so that the simulation provided is thereby undermined.
There is therefore a need for an improved flame simulating assembly to overcome or mitigate at least one of the disadvantages of the prior art.